When asked about the possibility of the price going that high, president says, 'That's interesting, I hadn't heard that.' He also says a tax hike on oil companies would drive the price up further.

He hadn’t heard that $4 rumor? Although 99% of Americans have heard it. (I made up the 99%...but I bet I’m close.) But, we must remember that he leads a very sheltered life. Reality is never allowed past the front doors of the White House. He learned that from his father.

The computer was doing fine this morning. Pages loading fast and furious. And then I went to Pioneer Woman Cooks, followed by a trip to see what’s new on Shorpy. I think it was the Apple Dumplings that really slowed my computer to a crawl. Then Shorpy’s HD photos finished it off. Time to reboot and reclaim some memory.

Interesting story...and lately the news has been filled with stories about a fear of 'stagflation', the curse of the 70's. And I remember that time well. That was the time period when I decided it made sense to go into business (a partnership) as a General Contractor. Who knew? We never went bankrupt and we paid all of our bills, but we made no profits to speak of. Year after year. All that work and we just couldn't seem to get ahead. And that was when I thought about the possibility of starting over in some different place. A place like Lassen County...and the rest is history. Our history.

And I heard this same thing on the radio; from Dubya and about the possibility of talking to Cuba’s leaders…"[Meeting with Raul] will send a discouraging message to those who wonder whether America will continue to work for the freedom of prisoners. It will give great status to those who have suppressed human rights and human dignity. I'm not suggesting there's never a time to talk, but I'm suggesting now is not the time not to talk with RaulCastro."

Talking will give ‘great status’? Oh please! And this ‘wisdom’ is from the lips of one who loves to be photographed shaking hands with tyrants all over the globe. (Did you catch the double negative in the quote above?)

Here it is; that extra day, seen just once every four years. Funny; so far it seems to be exactly like all of the rest of the days of the year. Not much is happening in the news and no storms. Just like yesterday.

There was a great story on NPR yesterday, all about ‘executive function’ and how it is suspected that our current cultural focus on organized play for our children has caused an increase in the diagnosis of ADHD.

“…when kids are in leagues and lessons, they are usually being regulated by adults. That means they are not able to practice regulating themselves.”

Of course it’s a subject that is on my mind a lot, as I’m one of the few people in the world that thinks that Little League should be outlawed. Believing instead that children should be furnished with a ball and a bat and sent outside to create their own games. No, you don’t need a glove. If you need one, you will mow some lawns or do some other chores raise the money to buy your own. Get over it!

This leads me think about the fact that we are so happy when our children are imaginative. (Their natural state) “Oh, Johnnie has such a great imagination!” and then we do our best to stifle it with organized play.

Sure, I’m just an old guy; ranting, as elders are prone to do. But I’m from that generation that didn’t see much television while growing up. I was ten when we had our first one. And Little League in those days was not democratic. Only the very best could even think of trying out for a team. “Not democratic’…duh! That’s how life really is! Might as well learn that when you’re young and resilient.

Nothing but stray thoughts this morning. What if we had a new cabinet position; Secretary of Peace. This whole War thing hasn’t been working all that well…in fact; it hasn’t worked well for over 60 years now.

In that same vein; suppose we assume that the whole world is a corporation and one division within that corporation is the War division. Can you imagine their profit and loss statement? Can’t you just see their PowerPoint presentations as they try to justify their existence?

Wasn’t there a song once; Give Peace a Chance? Have we ever done that? No? Well, color me naïve!

And then I read about the slight delay in the ‘Virtual Fence’ that is being built to secure our borders. “The $20 million project of sensor towers and advanced mobile communications was supposed to be completed in mid-2007 but had been delayed by software problems.” Hmm? Software problems? Well, that’s something that can be fixed by simply throwing some more money at the problem. And we all know how well government computer programs work. Just give them some time. (Can you say ‘Star Wars’?)

It’s simply amazing that we give such people power over our lives. These are people I wouldn’t want to spend 5 minutes with because I would be afraid of losing my intelligence, just by being in their vicinity. Ack! What’s that sucking sound?

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

“Senator JohnMcCain attacked Senator BarackObama for what he called a naïve approach to the conflict in Iraq and the effort to combat international terrorism.” I’m so confused! I thought it was Dubya’s approach that was naïve? I guess it all depends on who’s talking. The rule seems to be that all approaches are naïve, unless it’s your own. In that case, it’s a brilliant idea! (Cue the Hallelujah Chorus…)

And I heard a bit of history today while listening to Fresh Air. They broadcast an audio tape of the trial of the Chicago 7 (Or more properly, the Chicago 10). You can listen to it here. I can see why this tape was never released before this time. The prosecution and the judge come off as complete idiots while they are trampling over the civil rights of the defendants. You really should hear this… Yes, as always, history is our future!

And I heard that the Secretary of War (Gates) was in India trying to drum up business for the American defense contractors. India wants to buy about $10 billion dollars worth of goodies to help ‘keep the peace’ in that part of the world. And what better way to do that than with Made in America armaments. Gates is competing with the rest of the so-called civilized world; they also have their salespeople in attendance.

If Gates is successful, the border between Pakistan and India will be a showcase for the American war industry; with both sides having the latest and greatest! And with any luck, Gates could invite other nations; prospective customers, to come to the border and actually see the products in action.

And did anyone notice that the California lawmakers are not complaining about the possibility of their wages and benefits being cut 10% in the slashing and hacking of the budget that is proposed for the rest of the state departments? Would that be because they aren't included?

Yesterday, I was stuck for something to write about. I read all of the news and browsed the various blogs, but there wasn’t much available to stimulate the brain. And the same thing is happening this morning.

I’m having the same problem with my book selections. I went to the library yesterday, hoping to find a book that might hold my attention for more than a few hours. There was nothing. Not that I search with any kind of plan; I don’t. I walk the aisles of the library, head tilted sideways to see the titles on the two rows that I can see without crouching or getting a step stool. I think there are probably 6 or more rows that I never see. I’m saving those for a rainy day.

I made the mistake of picking up a CliveCusler book the other day and now, despite the fact that I can’t believe they pay him money to write this stuff, I’m still plodding away at the book. Torture! “She turned from her Underwood Model 5 typewriter and looked up…” Is the kind of dialogue you have to put up with. But why do I do it?

This would be a good question to ask the Senator from Illinois... Yes, he has voted for all the Ethanol bills.

"...2007 energy bill called for a whopping 36 billion gallons of renewable fuels by 2022. In order to ratchet up to that level, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently ordered that 9 billion gallons be blended with gasoline this year. Most of that will be ethanol made from corn; last year, the U.S. produced 5.8 billion gallons of the stuff."I'm sure you noticed the difference that the 5.8 billion gallons made. Food prices have risen and so has the price of fuel! Aren't we all happy?

What’s happening this morning? Not a blessed thing! The news is simply the ‘news’ and it’s more of the same thing we read yesterday. This is one of those times when I wish we had a parliamentary form of government; we could simply tell the current occupant of the White House to pack because we have ‘no confidence’ in him. Time to go. Here, let me hold the door for you. Next!

And apropos of nothing at all; yesterday I was in the midst of complaining to the post office about late deliveries and I suddenly had a flashback. It’s sometime in the late 1940’s and the postman comes to the front door with the mail. It’s about 10 in the morning and I’m hoping that my Dick Tracy Magic Decoder Ring will have arrived. The mailman says, ‘Sorry. Maybe it will be in this afternoon’s mail.’ And sure enough, when he arrives back at our door at 3, he has the package for me. Yes, kiddies, gather round while grandpa reminisces…two deliveries a day! And all for the price of a 3 cent stamp. Would I lie?

"...the recall is so huge that it's "a great drill for the state" in trying to enforce a new law that requires disclosure of where recalled beef went..."OK, folks, nothing to worry about. It's just a drill. (But, what if...?)

Monday, February 25, 2008

Absolutely amazing...80%! But for some reason, most never made it to church last weekend. We still had a few seats left. Actually...more than a few. But; who's counting, right? Maybe we'll see them next weekend; ya think?

I was listening to the author of this piece being interviewed on NPR this morning. Very much eye opening. But...will Americans ever change? As a nation and as humans, we all (some more than others) want to deny that mental illness exists. What a shame.

I’m reading a great new book, Facing East From Indian Country, by DanielRichter. This book dispels many myths about the relationship of the Native Americans with the early ‘pilgrims’ from Europe. It’s not for the squeamish, as it tells of the many atrocities committed by both sides in this never ending war. Yes, it still goes on. And a historical note (not from this book)…GeorgeWashington was the first to insist that Americans deal with the Native Americans as sovereign nations. But he didn’t have enough men in the army at that time to control the land hungry settlers who were bent on destroying the ‘Indians’ as a people.

Today, people say, ‘Why do we treat the ‘Indians’ any different than the rest of us?” Why? Because George said so! Get over it…

Yawn. Another day…but without wind and rain and so that’s good news. The only bad news so far was the phone call from our neighbor at 1:30 this morning to report that a sprinkler line was broken and would I mind turning it off? Of course. And I will deal with it in the daylight.

Now, awake once again, I have read the current post on Time Goes By and found a good article on dementia and Alzheimer’s. The article states what I’ve said many times, exercise and staying engaged with the world (education) helps to prevent these feared conditions. And the number of cases is dropping, “…what we may be seeing here is the accumulated effects of better education and better cardiovascular prevention…”

I know so many elders that seem to be dedicated to the goal of becoming ‘elderly’. Life is a burden. Change is feared and avoided. Can’t is the most frequent word heard from them.

I simply can’t imagine not wanting to know more about the world we live in. And I am not sure that this is an inherited trait, I think it’s a habit that you need to develop. You need to pursue knowledge daily, even when the first few things you read make you want to say, ‘Oh, no! It’s the same old news!’

Exercise is even harder to develop as a habit. Facts are still facts and I’m getting older and I can’t do all of the things I once did. But I can do something! I remember mom telling us about the old man that lived at ‘the home’ where she lived, and the fact that he walked 9 or 10 miles each day…and he was in his 90’s. I never met him, but he became a hero for me.

And I was just thinking; how few elders bother to exercise (walk) regularly. I know of 3 or 4 that I see walking on a regular basis here on the Planet Orland. There are more to be found in Chico, but the numbers have to equate to less than 1% of the elder population. What keeps so many at home?

I’m just guessing, but I think it’s fear that keeps them at home. Most seem preoccupied with burglar alarms and personal alarms. Of course some of that phobia comes from our society’s bad habit of believing everything they see or hear on the 6 o’clock news. (Read. People, read!) If you want to stay healthy; mentally and physically, you have choices to make and you can’t let fear, fear of change, keep you from living a full life.

And don’t hang around depressing old people…they already made their choice and they would love to drag you down into their tiny world. Don’t let them!

Sunday, February 24, 2008

Oh no! It's the 'Silly Season'...and it lasts right up till the last vote is counted. I'm not a big fan of pledges or pins, as they mean nothing. Except to the person using them. When 50,000 people in a stadium stand with their hands over their hearts, are they ALL patriots? All 50,000? Patriotism is found in sacrificial actions, not mere symbols.

I was typing away when I heard some sirens about 5:30. A quick look at the CHP pages on the CalTrans website showed me that a pole had fallen across the road at County Road 202 and Wyo. Apparently this pole didn’t carry any electricity to our house, as the lights never even flickered. And although it’s still dark outside, I tried some of the CalTrans live feeds. Truckee was quiet; I didn’t see a single vehicle pass by the camera. The pole that holds that camera was really shaking in the wind. The camera for the intersection of 28 and 89 showed me a couple of plows wandering about with their blades up. They looked confused, as one came out of a street and the other plow then turned and went back down the same street? Did the first plow miss something? Then, the Whitmore camera was dark, while the Kingvale camera is covered with snow. But I did see some traffic through the cloudy lens. Myers is quiet, not even a ‘chain monkey’ in sight. Just another day in the Sierra’s; and I’m glad I’m not there.

Did I ever mention the time it took me 11 hours to go from Verdi to Sacramento? Ah! The good old days!

Lucky for us, the big storm isn’t. Sure, it’s still raining and it’s quite windy, but the 60 mph gusts have been absent overnight. Maybe 45 mph, tops. Of course I’m writing this down without visible evidence to the contrary. It’s still dark and for all I know, the trees in the orchard and out in front are all down…but I doubt it.

I do know that that the almond trees in Glenn and Butte counties are still vulnerable and with this rain softening the soil, I wouldn’t be surprised to hear that even more trees have been lost. I was driving to Durham yesterday, via Ord Bend, and I hadn’t been that way in quite awhile. (The road floods quite often) I was surprised to see that many of the devastated orchards were still in the same condition as they were on January 6th, trees down everywhere, especially around Dayton. Most of the almond growers along Highway 32 have begun/finished cutting up the fallen trees that littered the orchards.

And it’s on mornings like this that I’m grateful for the previous owners’ attention to detail when they were building this house. Well insulated with double paned windows and a concrete tile roof. We can just barely hear the wind blowing and the driven rain on the windows is muted.

Saturday, February 23, 2008

What is with the Democrats and this fighting over ‘experience’? And I suppose we can even include McCain in this fight as well. Truth is; no one can be experienced in the role of President, except a former president and we don’t need one of those thankyouverymuch. Who was arguably one of our best presidents? Lincoln. With no experience. Zip. Nada. Being a one term Illinois legislator doesn’t count for much. And we’ve already seen what being part of a political family does for you in the way of ‘experience’. Me? I’m always going to vote for the one that isn’t part of the ‘in-crowd’, even if it’s a Republican. Or a Democrat. I want fresh ideas and fresh faces. Remember how Dubya resurrected his fathers’ advisors? And wasn’t that a brilliant strategy!

More truth; Americans have always resisted meaningful change. And just because they have done that for so long doesn’t mean it’s right or good. We need our eyes opened and soon.

The race is over and it's raining...right on time. And it was perfect timing for the race, the rain started about an hour after it was over. (Read about the race here) And as usual, after a good race I always turn up the volume on the car radio and listen to the Metropolitan Opera on NPR. This mornings opera was Carmen and it was great! I'm not sure where this interest in opera came from. I used to think it was simply OK, nothing to get excited about. But I found that after a great race it's so much fun to crank up the volume and let the opera rip! It was a couple of years ago and I was by myself after the race; I turned on the car radio and just felt like turning the volume knob to Max...and it felt so good! And I've been an opera fan ever since. Even opera at more normal volume levels. And I found out that punk rocker Patti Smith is an opera fan. Right on! Try it...you might like it.

The news is filled with warnings of a possible repeat of the January 5th storm and we have made preparations for it this time. Firewood. Check. Lantern. Check. Water. Check. "Mostly cloudy with a slight chance of rain in the morning...then rain in the afternoon. Highs 48 to 53. Southeast winds 15 to 30 mph with gusts increasing to 40 to 50 mph by late in the afternoon."In January we were frustrated by trying to read by candlelight and we didn't want to use up our flashlight power with reading, so we stopped at Target yesterday and got the very last battery powered 'family sized' lantern. It's charging right now and should be ready to go this afternoon.

I’m awake and thinking. That’s always a good way to start the day. And I started my ‘thinking’ with this quote I found on Time Goes By;

Quote of the Week:

“How to get people to vote against their interests and to really think against their interests is very clever. It’s the cleverest ruling class that I have ever come across in history. It’s been 200 years at it. It’s superb.”

- Gore Vidal

I’m not sure what specifics prompted Mr.Vidal to utter those words and you really can’t tell from the quote itself…so it makes you think.

It made me think of Patriotism. That indefinable something that every politician loves to cloak himself in every day before heading off to the office. And it’s at the office where he will defend everything he does as being ‘patriotic’. Every piece of legislature that is introduced and every bill supported is a patriotic one. And every one who argues against that legislation is therefore unpatriotic. It’s all quite simple. And the simple love it. They love it so much that they emulate it in their own lives as well. Weaving it into every fiber that makes up the fabric of our society; the cloak of patriotism is made to fit us all, like it or not.

It made me think of the Flag Salute and Pledge of Allegiance. OK, take the patriotism away for a moment and look at the ceremony for what it is. Children and some adults reciting words, hand over heart, day after day. Week after week. Repetition. Repetition. Repetition. After a few months of this, do any of them think beyond the order of the words themselves? Of course not, but it does make them aware of patriotism and the need to be part of the society that worships it. Thinkers; those who question… are not welcome.

Friday, February 22, 2008

28 miles? Isn't our border a little bit longer than that? And it's either $15 million or $20 million; it's hard to tell from the article. OK, so it's a little under a million dollars a mile. That's close enough for government work!And now...if I were a 'geek' and I'm not of course, I would see the fence as challenge and not a barricade. Hey! Bring it on!

Do people actually get paid for being silly? I guess so. C'mon. Get real! It's still El Porto. It will always be El Porto.

Back in the day, when I was the 'delivery boy' for Bill's Liquor store, I would have an occasional order to deliver in El Porto. Not many, as the El Porto drunks were less likely to have the cash for delivery AND a tip.

Although I grew up in Manhattan Beach, I'm sticking with the residents of El Porto on this one...

I think it’s past time for me to post some things in my other blogs. I have neglected the Working blog for quite awhile now and I should also report that I made (and we consumed) the tomato soup from The Pioneer Woman Cooks site. That’s worth a posting on my Good Eats blog.

Another rainy morning. Even so, I need to brave the weather and get in some racewalking time in the park. I’m pretty sure I will join the small crowd in Durham tomorrow for the Almond Blossom 5K. I’m not that fast, but if I consider it to be just a training race and of no importance, I won’t be stressed by my lack of performance.

Nature has delivered some color right on time for the Almond Blossom race; despite the sad weather, the blossoms are exploding everywhere. Orchards are turning pink and white all throughout the region. And the bees are already busy at work. They’ve been wandering around for the past few weeks, looking anxiously for a blossom or two; now they have millions to choose from.

And now that I have looked at the weather forecast, it looks like the blossoms will be in some danger. High winds are forecast for Saturday night and Sunday. Darn! With all of this wet ground, there are bound to be some trees lost.

Darn! That promised rain (90%) has arrived early. It doesn't look like I'm going to get in any walking time this morning. It's not that I don't have other things to do of course. I did buy some of the stained glass for Kitty and Dean's front doors. So I can refine the design this morning. And I have to think about the family room painting plan. I've got the paint! And I have to scan some photos for a friend. And then I read about the Pioneer Woman's tomato soup and that sounds great for a day like today. Decisions! Decisions!

Our son, Bill, lost our granddaughter last night. Went to check on the kids before going to bed himself and she wasn't in her bed! Ack! Where was she? Before total panic set in, he turned on the lights and there she was...asleep in the clothes hamper.

Of course I started my morning with a dose of Time Goes By. And this mornings posting was all about blogging and blogger stats. For instance, who blogs? “…and the smallest group, 22.9 percent, are Republicans.” Of course. Oh, oh. There are so many places I could go with that simple fact. But to be kind…I won’t.

The day begins just like every other day. Make the coffee and let the cat in. Then it’s time for the weather report (44°, partly cloudy with a 90% chance of rain) followed by a review of the email. Coffee is ready. Back to the mail and the RSS feeds. Once I have determined that the world is still in its appointed orbit and has not self destructed overnight, I open my journal and write.

Let’s see…yesterday we had to see our accountant (tax time) and while I was there, I asked her about the possibility of a refund; the refund that is supposed to fix our ailing economy. She didn’t know the details yet, but as she understood it, the money will come from your own refund in the year 2009. It’s simply borrowing ahead from your refund money. And you won’t be able to refuse it. So the smart thing to do is to place it somewhere safe and let it collect some interest. This is not what the government wants you to do. They want you to spend it…now! At Best Buy.

Writing about taxes reminded me of the story about the Californiafinancial disaster and idiotic attempt to fix it by cutting expenses ‘across the board’ as Arnold wants to do. Think about it; if this were your own budget, would you cut every expense by the same amount? Duh! Of course not. You would prioritize. You would determine what was necessary and what was not. You would THINK about it. I know that’s asking a lot of our governor, but with some help, he could do it.

And that story reminded me of ElizabethHill, the Legislative Analyst. And I think it’s time we drafted her to run our state for us. For years, we have trusted her to tell us the truth about the cost of bills and referendums. She tells the governor and the legislators what their schemes and dreams will really cost. (not that they pay attention) So let’s cut out the middle men and get rid of the lawmakers and the governor. Let Elizabeth run things! Heck, she should be President!

Apparently I wasn’t the only one thinking of ElizabethHill. When I Googled her name I came up with this article. Right on.

(From the article..."And she recommended scuttling the yacht tax loophole that Assembly Republicans just won't give up") You see, the Republicans are there to defend the 'common man' and his yacht.

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Berger Devine Yeager, the corporation responsible for the construction of this, has removed all reference from their website...in fact their website seems to be missing as well. I guess they're simply modest...as is the building.

The news is filled with Cuba and Castro stories now that he (Castro) has signaled his resignation from power. A perfect opportunity for the U.S. to modify its crazy behavior towards this poor country. But, no! It is not going to happen. The Decider has decided. We support dictators and military regimes all around the world. We trade with ‘enemies’ everywhere. We do business with Vietnam and North Korea…but not with Cuba. Simply amazing!

I’m in a Hawai’ian mood. I filled my Clip with Polynesian music the other day and have been listening whenever I get a chance. I never thought much about that kind of music until I was sent to Hawai’i and then I quickly became fascinated by the culture, the music and the artists.

Every morning and evening, as I slowly made my way back and forth between hotel and office on the Nimitz highway, I would have the car radio tuned to a local station that played nothing but Hawai’ian music. I could ignore the traffic jam all around me and focus on the music, the palm trees and the white puffy clouds that sailed by on the trade winds, high above the stalled traffic. Ah! Paradise!

But paradise has a troubled history and because of that I have always been an advocate of a ‘free’ Hawai’i; long before I visited the islands. I know it’s just one small inequity in a very troubled world, but it would be the right thing to do. Give Hawai’i back to the Hawaiians.

Monday, February 18, 2008

Did I mention that I now put my various RSS feeds into folders? That really helps me to avoid RSS meltdown, where I relentlessly follow every updated feed, as it happens. Now I can wait for a day or two before I explore a folder. And one of my folders is entitled, 'Art'. And there's a sub-folder named 'Encaustic' and it's a favorite of mine, as is this blog... For more info on encaustics, go here... or use the Google search for 'encaustics' on the Joanne Mattera blog above.ps. And this link as well. Better yet, go to a gallery and see some encaustics. I found some at the Chico Paper Company.

Darn! I can’t go training/walking this morning. We’re having a board meeting at the Berry Patch and that includes breakfast. Groan! But I did get in some exercise yesterday. I cleaned the pool filter and re-installed the television antenna in its new spot on the new fence. So, if anything should ever happen to be on television, we’ll be ready for it. And I picked a bunch of citrus fruit for the customers of the Plant Barn, which I will deliver later today. I’ve been dropping off lemons and oranges there occasionally and I was rewarded the other day when a customer who had been taking some of those lemons, made cookies with them! Very good cream filled lemon cookies. (This is the same customer that makes fig tarts from Denise’s figs) I wonder if I can get the recipe? If I do, I’ll post it on my Good Eats blog.

It’s Monday and it’s President’s Day. A holiday. Funny thing about retirement; holidays no longer matter. The only difference it makes in our day to day life is that we might see a larger number of customers in the stores while we were shopping. If we went shopping. Which we’re not… because it’s a holiday. So holidays DO matter after all!

All of this leads me to wonder; what is President’s day all about? According to Wikipedia; among other things, we should see “Community, historical celebrations; honoring the veterans and Purple Heart recipients; Congressional recognition.”

Hey! I’m a veteran. I wonder what they have planned for me?

And…

We all know that there is a small but powerful group of people in this world who believe that there is nothing more important than filling out a form properly. Even incorrect entries are welcomed as long as every blank space in the form is filled out. Some of those people work for Los AngelesCounty.

Before troubles were spotted in the Feb. 5 primary, the double-bubble system left nonpartisan votes uncounted in '02, '04, and '06, election officials say.

Here’s the worst of it… “Confusion over how to mark the ballot, critics say, caused tens of thousands of votes to go uncounted in three elections between 2002 and 2006.

At the time, election officials knew that some votes were not being counted but saw no need to make changes. After all, the missing votes went unnoticed in the three primary elections and no one complained.” Well, of course that makes it right.

Sunday, February 17, 2008

Guess what? It's cheap at twice the price! It's called 'democracy'. It's 'freedom'. It's what we are supposed to celebrate...whether you like it or not. Ya know, the citizens in France take to the streets to protest and strike quite regularly. Their government is afraid of their citizens. That's a real good thing!

Before God we are all equally wise - and equally foolish. - Albert Einstein

Ask a deeply religious Christian if he’d rather live next to a bearded Muslim that may or may not be plotting a terror attack, or an atheist that may or may not show him how to set up a wireless network in his house. On the scale of prejudice, atheists don’t seem so bad lately. - Scott Adams

Honesty may be the best policy, but it's important to remember that apparently, by elimination, dishonesty is the second-best policy. - George Carlin

In religion and politics, people's beliefs and convictions are in almost every case gotten at second hand, and without examination. - Mark Twain

Examinations are formidable even to the best prepared, for the greatest fool may ask more than the wisest man can answer. - Charles Caleb Colton

An odd feeling. Yesterday, I was working on the roof of the new storage shed at the Plant Barn, putting down the felt underlayment and then the shingles. My first roof! Then my daughter walked by and we chatted briefly. That was when she said something like, ‘Well, you’re almost 70 and you’re learning something new.’ This was true. And I had no problem with the concept of learning something new. We all should. Every day. But the fact that I was ‘almost 70’…now that bothered me! I like to think I’m almost 68. On August 31 of the year 2010, I will be almost 70.

I do enjoy my training walks a lot more now that I have my Clip radio to listen to; but there’s a problem. It’s one way, as radio generally is, and I want to respond to what I hear. Especially when it’s something like the news report I heard yesterday; General Motors wants to retire most of their workforce so that they can hire younger workers and won’t have to pay them as much. Yes, they said that. It was at that point that I envisioned HenryFord spinning in his grave and I wanted to yell, “What? Are you idiots? Who’s going to buy your stupid cars if the workers can’t afford them?”

Isn't that amazing? His photo (Jay Dyckman) seems to be that of an adult. But when I read the text, it 's the ramblings of a 12 year old...? OK, maybe 14.I was going to comment on his blog, but I would have to register and that would take more energy than I want to expend on a kid.

When it comes to wedding anniversaries, I know you should be properly sentimental. Show some respect for the institution of marriage. After all, it’s our 45th. But I can’t help myself; I found this quote the other day and so here it is…

“I love being married. It's so great to find that one special person you want to annoy for the rest of your life.” - Rita Rudner

Of course, having posted this, I'm in danger of being pummeled severely.

Friday, February 15, 2008

I’m reading another biography these days; First Son by Bill Minutaglio. A biography of Dubya and the Bush family dynasty. So why am I reading about this loser? Because it’s fascinating to see his family in action and how they shaped the lives of their children. It’s too bad that not enough Americans read this book before the elections of 2000 and 2004.

Be careful, you may get what you wish for. We were hoping to see the fence finished up yesterday and sure enough, it was. Jeekers! We’re surrounded by a blank wall! Our view of the orchard is gone and we’re trapped here...Help!

Ok, I know we will become used to it after awhile; after all, it was our normal view of the world just a month ago. And the return of the roses will help to soften the look of all of that bare cedar fencing. The roses were pruned last week and so they are just stumps at this stage, leaving even more of the new fence exposed.

While the fence is new, I will take the time to remove a board or two and fashion a hole for Boo the cat to escape through. Both coming and going.

Last night, here on the Planet Orland, it was time for the annual Valentine Dinner at the parish hall. It’s put on by the youth group of the two churches, the Catholic Church and the Federated church. Yes, it’s (Gasp!) ecumenical! And it seems to work quite well. The money raised this year will go towards their trip south to Lynwood, California. Lynwood? Anyway, they will be working on a Habitat for Humanity project while they are there. A good endeavor. And last year they went to Seattle to work at the Rescue Mission downtown.

What I find most refreshing about this group of teens is the fact that they don’t go to Mexico to build houses, as 90% of the church youth groups do. Of course they need houses in Mexico. And I’m not begrudging them that. But what I find wrong with that kind of mission is the fact that the trip south to Mexico will take them through and past great poverty right in their own backyards. California, like the rest of the nation has hidden poverty that would simply astound most of us. Have you ever heard of Ivanhoe? Lemon Cove? Woodlake? Naranjo? All are small and poverty stricken villages in California that can’t be seen from I-5 while going 70 mph.

Truth be told; the youth group wouldn’t even have to go more than a mile or so to find the kind of poverty that comes along with an agricultural economy here on the Planet Orland.